FeeBelly helps users spot danger when signing complex contracts

FeeBelly, founded by Michael Asare, helps users identify wording in contracts that could indicate hidden fees.

FeeBelly, founded by Michael Asare, helps users identify wording in contracts that could indicate hidden fees.

(Feebelly photo)

Kate MacArthurBlue Sky Innovation

Anyone who’s signed a contract for a mortgage or even a club membership knows they can be a pain, especially if you miss a clause about overages, fees or extra costs.

Michael Asare, founder and CEO of FineprintF Technologies in Chicago says he has your back. He created FeeBelly, a mobile app he calls “a fine-print detective” for consumers.

The app can read documents to show hidden fees and other costly details buried in terms of use, financial agreements and contracts. Asare built the app for a variety of documents, from car loans to warranties.

Users take a picture of the document with their phone and select the type of contract for the app to read. FeeBelly searches line-by-line for language and keywords that it has stored in the cloud related to hidden fees. It also can read PDFs uploaded into the app.

Companies such as Google and Facebook thrive on your personal data — the bits of information that tell advertisers how old you are, what brands you like and how long you lingered on that must-see cat video. Historically, how these companies use this data has been subject to oversight by the Federal...

Companies such as Google and Facebook thrive on your personal data — the bits of information that tell advertisers how old you are, what brands you like and how long you lingered on that must-see cat video. Historically, how these companies use this data has been subject to oversight by the Federal...

(Brian Fung)

The app then highlights the keywords in red; tapping on the word takes users to the paragraph so they can re-examine it.

“If you don’t feel comfortable, you can ask if they will waive or renegotiate the terms or you can check out what the competition has before you buy,” said Asare, adding that people could also check out the terms with a lawyer.

But the reality is that people don’t always read contracts. Asare learned that the hard way. When he was ready to pay off a loan, he found out it had a prepayment clause that he didn’t catch.

“I ended up paying more than I should have on the loan,” he said. “That was like a ‘wow’ moment for me.”

He incorporated the company in August 2015 with $150,000 in savings as well as money fromfriends and family investors. Since FeeBelly’s launch Jan. 9, Asare said, it has drawn $24,000 in revenue from paid subscribers.

It has 596 active users, mainly in the U.S., he said. About 200 of those users paid for a premium version that has more keywords and can scan, store and email larger documents. The paid version costs $99 per year, or $8.99 per month. Asare hopes to break even in the second quarter of 2018.

To grow revenue and customers, Asare hopes to add advertising on the free version, plus ratings and scorecards for businesses that would include hidden fee and cost summaries. He is working on a computer browser plug-in to read larger documents for use by business customers at a different price.

Consumer class action attorney Keith Keogh agrees that shedding light on terms and conditions can only be helpful for consumers, though he cautioned against relying too heavily on the app.

“The danger is that someone will rely upon that and miss something that might be important or terms the app might not pick up,” Keogh said. “It should be a tool to highlight the issue, but not to replace reading the document.”